Free shop for Schwäbisch Hall
A project by Scharfe Radieschen in December 2023
Our Openinghours
Our latest opening hours you will find on Google: https://g.co/kgs/pVyAgz
Where and when?
We want to move into a shop in the centre of Schwäbisch Hall in December. The aim is to reach as many people as possible in a central location. We already have one or two locations in mind and will certainly be able to make more concrete announcements here soon.
Why at Christmas time?
The discrepancy between rich and poor within society is particularly striking at this time. The consumption frenzy is geared towards the wallet. Those with money can stroll around the Christmas market, buy roasted almonds and enjoy mulled wine. The pressure to find the perfect present is enormous and, above all, enormously unequal. And because we see it that way, we would like to invite everyone to make the Umsonstladen a place of togetherness and mutual enrichment, far away from money and social structures.
True to the quote from the Siegen art project: "Ist-etwa-alles-Umsonstladen", "Alles in Allem: Alles für Alle, bis Alles Allen is’"
What is a free shop?
In the free shop you can find things that are too good to throw away.
Everything is free. People bring and take things, far removed from the idea of money or exchange.
With the Free Shop we want to invite people to think about their own shopping behaviour. When we take things at their price, we can make room for personal appreciation. By sharing, reusing and redesigning things, we conserve valuable resources and create a sense of community solidarity.
The idea is that we are in a downward spiral of buying, consuming and throwing away. Our capitalist system is increasingly creating an imbalance between rich and poor. We waste precious resources by producing more and more. More clothes, more household goods, etc. The we of it would have to be recreated. Climate change is a powerful reminder that people need to radically rethink their consumption patterns.
With the Free Shop, we want to give space to an idea whose realisation should contribute to a fairer and more sustainable world.
Getting involved
If you would like to be part of the Free Shop, you are welcome to bring items, ideas and contributions that you would like to give away for free. Giving and receiving are independent of each other.
A few basic rules:
- The items you bring should be clean and in working order, and you should sort them yourself if possible.
- will not be accepted: Hazardous waste / New and used batteries / Literature, films and other media with inhumane, violent, anti-Semitic, racist or sexist content / Unauthorised self-created or self-copied media of any kind / Large electrical appliances. This list is not exhaustive.
- The free shop is open to everyone
- Delivery only during opening hours and by prior arrangement
- Transport/packing materials should be taken back
- A maximum of 2 bags can be handed in. For larger quantities, please contact us first
- You can take as much as you can carry, but only for your own use - no resale!
We also want to create the opportunity to share skills, experiences and needs from person to person. So if you have something you would like to share ( I offer ....) or something you would like or are looking for ( I am looking for...) then you can put it on a piece of paper and hang it up in the shop.
If you would like to offer something active in the shop (handicrafts, singing, reading etc.) we are open to ideas and you are very welcome to contact us.
We are also happy to receive any kind of support, such as assistance with opening hours.
Want to make a donation now?
No problem! Write us an email and we will get back to you, please note the rules of the Free Shop.